Container



Dec. 9, 1952 J SMUL$| 2,620,941

CONTAINER Filed March 4, 1948 INVENTOR. THEODORE J SMULSK/ ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 9, 1952 CONTAINER Theodore J. Smulski, Gary, Ind., assignor to Productive Inventions, Inc., acorporation of Indiana Application March 4, 1948, Serial No. 12,999

2 Claims.

This invention relates generally to containers and more particularly is directed to a container for a commodity adapted to be carried in a pocket or purse for personal use. The container may be used as desired, but is preferably designed and constructed to retain a commodity of stick form, such as soap or lipstick.

An important object of the invention is to provide a container comprised of component parts provided with improved means for detachably connecting the parts together.

;A particular object of the invention is to provide a container in which one component may be a separate complete container and the other component serves as a protective cover.

Another object of the invention is to provide a container in which one component serves as a handling means for the commodity or contents.

A further object of the invention is to design and construct a container comprised of two components which can be economically manufactured and readily assembled. Other objects and features of the invention will appear when the following specification is considered in connection with the appended drawings, in which Figure 1 is a top view of the assembled container;

Figure 2 is a side view of the assembled container with a portion broken away to illustrate a detail of construction;

Figure 3 is an end view of the assembled container showing the bridge of the male component;

Figure 4 is a transverse sectional view of the assembled container taken substantially on line 44 of Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a perspective view of the female and male components of the container before assembly;

Figure 6 is a perspective view showing one way the female and male components of the container may be assembled;

Figure 7 is a transverse sectional view of the assembled container taken substantially on line 'l'! of Figure 2; and

Figure 8 is a side view of a slightly modified male component of a container showing a commodity carried thereby.

In the drawing and specification, like characters of reference denote similar parts.

Referring particularly to Figures 5 and 6, the female component of the container includes corresponding divergent resilient leg members or portions 9 and I0 connected by a bridge member or portion I I. The legs are preferably curved in cross-section as clearly depicted in Figures 3, 4 and 7 and provided with inturned slightly curvilinear flanges I2 adjacent their longitudinal edges.

The male component may include corresponding divergent resilient leg members or portions I3 and 14 connected by a bridge member or portion I5. The legs are preferably made substantially planar and provided with inturned flat flanges I6 adjacent their longitudinal edges. If found desirable, the flanges on the leg members of the male component may be omitted.

The leg members I3 and I4 of the male component are preferably formed with ridge formations or projections I'l adjacent their longitudinal edges which extend parallel thereto from the bridge I5 for approximately one-third of the length of the legs. The bridge I5 is preferably provided with outwardly extending ears I8 to provide a convenient manual grip whereby to facilitate the assembly and disassembly of the male and female components. If found desirable, the bridge II of the female component could be provided with ears in addition to or in lieu of the ears on the bridge I5.

The male'component is preferably designed and constructed to receive and support a commodity I9 in the form of a stick as exemplified in Figure 8. As illustrated in this figure, the legs may be made parallel as the divergence of this component as depicted in the other figures is not essential to the locking of the components together. If found desirable, the legs may be made to converge so as to normally grip the commodity. The male component provides a support for convenient handling of the commodity as the latter may be easily shifted and then held in any extended operating position desired by merely exerting pressure on the legs of the component.

Figure 5 shows the two complementary components of the container before assembly. As shown in Figure 6, the male component is manually positioned between the divergent resilient leg members 9 and In of the female component, the leg members I3 and I4 forming substantially perpendicular walls in the space between leg members 9 and II) with the flanges I2 of leg member ID of the female component abutting and restraining the divergent resilient leg members I3 and I4 of the male component. The divergent resilient leg member 9 of the female component may then be manually depressed to abut the legs [3 and I4 of the male component whereupon the male component may be manually moved longitudinally or telescopically into the female component until the leg members l3 and H abut the bridge ll of the female component and the curvilinear flanges l2 adjacent the edges of leg members 9 and [0 of the female component simultaneously receive and engage the mating ridges or projections 11 on the male component in a manner whereby to lock the two components together against the pressure of the resilient divergent legs of the female component and to form the closed container as shown in Figures 1 and 2 for a commodity such as 19 exemplified in Figure 8. The locking relationship of the curvilinear flanges l2 of the female component the 1 projections I! on the male component is clearly shown in Figures 3 and 7.

The components may also be assembled 'by inserting the male component so that it abuts bridge member ll of the female component whereupon the curvilinear flanges l-2 on the resilient leg member '9 may be pressed into snap latching or locking engagement with the projections I1 on the male component. Obviously, both of the flanges l2 may be caused to substantially simultaneously snap over the projections I1.

Alternative latching and locking devices may be used such as tongues and slots, or circular projections with mating dimples or similar means permitting of sliding or snap or fixed engagements, the choice of such means being dictated largely by the contemplated uses or contents of the container. Also, the resilience in the latching or engagement of the two components may be provided solelyby thecurvilinear flangeof the female componentwith parallel rather than divergent leg members. Moreover, the feature of resilience or tension in theengagement of the two components may be eliminated entirely and the container may beheld together by slidable friction engagement of projections on one component with seats for such projections -on the other component.

Other modifications and changes in detail will occur to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of theinventiombut having set forth the objects and .nature thereof. and having shown and described. constructions embodying the principles of the invention, what I claim as new and useful and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. An elongated container substantially square in cross-section comprising a female member and a male member seated in said female member, said female member having an end wall and a pair of corresponding normally divergent elongated side walls resiliently flexibly connected to said end wall, the longitudinal edge portions of said side walls having inturned inclined flanges extending the full length of the edge portions and engaging the side walls of the male member, said male member having an end wall and a pair of corresponding normally divergent elongated side walls resiliently flexibly connected to said end wall, the longitudinal edge portions of said side walls having inturned inclined flanges bearing against the side walls of the female member, and said male member also having a pair of outwardly extending relatively short longitudinal ridges formed :in each of its side walls adjacent its flanges and end wall and resiliently interlocking with the flanges 'of the female .member.

v2. The structure defined in claim :1, in which the end wall of the male member is provided with ears for manual engagement whereby removal of the male member from the female member may be facilitated.

THEODORE J.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file "of this patent:

UNITED STATES PA IENTS Number :Name Date 309,872 Parks 30, 1884: 612,906 King Oct. 25.. 98

1,326,498 .Dec.-30, 1919 1,456,385 Kvarnstrom May 22, I923 '1;486;4l5 Casper Mar. 11, 1934 1,909,136 Thomas May '16., 1833 22,420,184 Mekelburg May 6, 194'! 2 421225 'Stensgaard t 1:947

FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 1,359 Great Britain 1865 

